


Distractions

by theron09



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Community: beacon_hills, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-02
Updated: 2014-06-02
Packaged: 2018-02-03 03:43:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,561
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1729880
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theron09/pseuds/theron09
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stiles aims to focus on his college work, but it isn’t easy when Scott’s roommate is so attractive.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Distractions

**Title:** Distractions  
 **Fandom:** Teen Wolf  
 **Characters/Pairings:** Stiles/Isaac, Scott  
 **Word Count:** 2, 514  
 **Summary:** Stiles aims to focus on his college work, but it isn’t easy when Scott’s roommate is so attractive.  
 **A/N:** Written for the Themed Big Bang challenge at [](http://beacon-hills.livejournal.com/profile)[**beacon_hills**](http://beacon-hills.livejournal.com/). Thanks to [](http://seraphina-snape.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://seraphina-snape.livejournal.com/)**seraphina_snape** for the beta!

Stiles is on fire. Not literally, but figuratively, as he rattles out the words that are going to make up his first essay at college. It’s a topic that interests him, which helps with the speed he’s working at – although if he’s being honest, the fast-approaching deadline probably has more to do with it. Reaching for his coffee, he takes a healthy swig as he rereads his latest paragraph; maybe he won’t suck too badly at the whole college thing after all.

He’s about to get back to writing when the door swings open and Scott walks in. Scott’s not his roommate – they hadn’t been that lucky – but he’s spent more time in Stiles’ dorm since they started college than Stiles’ actual roommate Jackson has. Jackson’s been out at a different party every night and most of Stiles’ interactions with him have involved raised eyebrows – which is why he’s ridiculously glad that his best friend got into the same college as him. Well, that, and he’d miss Scott if he wasn’t around.

“How’s the assignment going?” asks Scott, stopping in the doorway. “Okay for me to come in?”

Stiles nods. “It’s going. I’ve got about five hundred more words to go, I think. So yeah, distract me – let me take a break.”

“Cool.” Scott steps inside, followed by someone who is… definitely a distraction. The guy who follows Scott into the dorm is tall and handsome, slightly curly hair framing a face that Stiles has to force himself not to stare at. “This is Isaac.”

 _Isaac._ Scott’s elusive roommate who has been too shy to come and meet Stiles up until now. Or maybe Scott’s just been hiding him from Stiles – now that Stiles has seen the guy he definitely thinks that’s a possibility.

“Hey, dude,” says Stiles, “come on in, make yourself at home. I’m Stiles – don’t believe anything Scott’s said about me.”

“Who says I mentioned you at all?” Scott throws himself down onto Stiles’ bed, linking his hands behind his head and grinning.

Isaac snorts, rubbing at the back of his neck when both Scott and Stiles turn to look at him. “Sorry, it’s just – Scott, Stiles was pretty much the first topic you mentioned after ‘ _hi, I’m Scott’_ and _‘I’ll take that bed’_.”

“Hah!” Stiles sticks his tongue out at Scott. “I knew it.”

“Isaac,” whines Scott, “you’re supposed to be on my side.”

Shrugging, Isaac closes the door behind him and leans back against it, looking a little more relaxed. “We can all be on the same side: honesty.”

Stiles turns to look at his computer screen so he can hide his smile – Scott’s all too good at recognizing Stiles’ I-like-him smile. He’s completely lost his trail of thought for his essay now, so he clicks save and writes a note to himself to ‘FINISH THIS BEFORE 2 AM’. It _is_ probably about time he took a break anyway.

“My mom called today,” Scott says once Stiles has moved back around to face them, “she says hi and wanted me to tell you she’s making sure your dad eats well at least once this week.”

“Good, he’s – wait, what? What’s she doing?”

“She’s invited him around at the weekend.”

“So your mom is cooking for my dad – like a – is it a date?”

Scott’s eyes widen. “Oh. I didn’t think of that. Maybe it is.”

It’s not really that much of a surprise, Stiles supposes. After all, their two little families have spent a lot of time together because of his friendship with Scott, and their parents have grown close over the years.  Still, it’s weird to think of his dad dating anyone, never mind Melissa McCall. Weird, but not necessarily bad.

“So how long have you two actually known each other?” asks Isaac, glancing between the two of them. He’s still leaning against the door; he looks casual enough, but Stiles can’t get rid of the feeling that Isaac is primed to bolt if he starts getting  
uncomfortable with hanging out.

“Years and years and years,” says Scott.

“We were four when we met,” Stiles tries to be more useful. “We went through school together, both ended up here which is _awesome_. Scott’s a good guy, you know, even if he does snore.”

“I don’t snore.”

Isaac sucks in a breath then exhales slowly. “Sorry to tell you, Scott, but you do. Loudly.”

Scott pouts. “You keep taking his side.”

“It’s because I’m awesome,” Stiles says, gesturing at himself. He’s pleased when it makes Isaac laugh and, oh, he hasn’t been _this_ pleased to make someone laugh since Lydia. He needs to get a grip; this isn’t high school, it’s college. Instant crushes should not be as much of a thing, especially not when it’s Scott’s roommate.

Still, he spends the next hour trying to make Isaac laugh again right up until Scott reminds him he has an essay to write and he promptly spends the rest of the night panicking. Apparently last-minute assignment writing is one feature of his life that’s going to be just as much a thing in college as it was in high school.

 

~~

  
  
The next day, he hands his assignment in and then goes to meet Scott for lunch. There’s a café on campus that they’ve been hanging out at during their breaks; it’s quieter than some of the other places around, and they serve the best hot chocolate Stiles has ever had. He stands aside at the door to let someone pass and then heads inside, grinning when he spots Scott sitting at a table in the corner. His grin widens when he sees Isaac is there too, a beanie hat pulled down so it almost covers his eyes. He’d been hoping Isaac might hang out with them sometimes now the awkwardness of a first meeting was over with, and not just because he thought Scott’s roommate was cute – Isaac also seemed like the kind of person who’d fit in well with them as friends.  

After he places his order he makes his way over to the table and drops down into a seat, kicking Scott lightly in the shin as a hello. “Essay’s handed in – it’s probably crap but it’s done.”

“You always say your work’s crap.” Scott frowns. “And it never is.”

“Ah,” says Isaac, “so you’re one of _those_ students.”

Shrugging, Stiles chooses to ignore the comment and reaches across to steal one of Scott’s fries instead. He pops it in his mouth, chewing deliberately when Scott protests as though sharing food is something they don’t do all the time. Winding Scott up is always fun.

“It’s only a first assignment anyway – no-one expects you to do brilliantly,” says Scott.

“True. I’ll be happy as long as I pass. What’s the rest of your day timetabled like?”

“Solid – I’ve got about twenty minutes before I need to go. Isaac’s free, though, aren’t you?”

Isaac nods, clearing his throat. “Had a busy morning but it means I’ve got nothing now so I’m not complaining.”

Neither is Stiles – he has the afternoon free, too, and an opportunity to get to know Isaac better isn’t one he’s going to turn down. He’s about to ask Isaac if there’s anything he wants to do when his food arrives. “Oh, man, this burger looks so good. So good. You want to hang out then, Isaac? I’ve got some reading to do later but we could watch a film or something for a while?”

There’s a long moment where it seems like Isaac isn’t going to reply - and Stiles suddenly finds the table very interesting to look at - and then he answers. “That’d be cool, yeah. We could use mine and Scott’s dorm if you like? Scott mentioned your roommate’s kind of a party animal.”

“Sounds good.” Stiles has only been in Scott’s dorm once before, on their first day. After that, Scott had preferred to come to his rather than make Isaac feel uncomfortable, so being invited to the dorm by Isaac himself is awesome. “Jackson’s okay, I guess. He’s just into a different scene.”

“I guess that’s the luck of the draw when it comes to college roommates, huh? I’m glad I ended up with Scott.”

“Yeah.” Stiles grins. “So am I.”

He spends the next ten minutes or so eating his food, happy to just listen as Scott and Isaac talk about their classes. As much as he likes to talk to people, there’s something to be said for just sitting back and listening as well – it helps that Scott’s voice is so familiar and Isaac, well, Isaac has a really nice voice.

“I’ve got to get going,” announces Scott, standing up and giving Stiles a knowing look. “Class starts soon. You two have fun – maybe I’ll see you later, Stiles?”

“Sure.” He nods, passing Scott his rucksack. He watches as Scott walks away then turns his attention back to Isaac, who is sitting up a little straighter in his seat now that Scott’s gone. Stiles hopes he can get the relaxed posture back before they’re done, and he stays silent, letting Isaac control the conversation.

“So what’s Beacon Hills like?” asks Isaac.

He grabs a napkin and wipes at his mouth to catch any stray ketchup before he replies. “Ah, you know, like any other place, I guess. It’s smaller than here but not too small. The sheriff’s really awesome.”

“Huh?”

“He’s my dad,” Stiles supplies, “so I might be a little biased.”

Isaac laughs at that, and Stiles thinks they’re going to be okay.

 

~~

  
  
They’re way better than okay. They walk back to Isaac’s dorm room making up stories about the people they pass as they go – the girl by the fountain becomes a mysterious spy who’s on campus to get secret information about the latest advances in the science faculty, Isaac guesses that the guy sitting on the steps outside the library is waiting for a date, there’s a group of friends messing around who they decide must be secret superheroes. By the time they reach the dorm, things are definitely no longer awkward. 

Stiles sits himself down on top of Scott’s bed and picks up the lacrosse stick Scott keeps on his bedside table. Neither of them play anymore – not that they really _played_ in the first place – but Stiles likes how nostalgic Scott still is about their high school sport. “That’s another thing about Beacon Hills,” he says, turning the stick over in his hands, “we’re crazy about lacrosse.  
Bonkers. If you don’t play, you watch or you sit on the reserve bench because you want to play.”

“Lacrosse? Really? It was swimming at my high school – my dad was the coach. I was on the team for a while.”

“Have you kept it up? Swimming’s meant to be really good for your health, right?”

“It is. But no, I didn’t keep it up. I didn’t really get on with my dad and then, well, he died, so…” Isaac trails off, scratching at his neck like he had the night before.

“Crap. Sorry, I didn’t know.”

“It’s okay, most people don’t think someone our age could have already lost a parent.”

Stiles shakes his head. “But I should have – my mom died when I was young so, yeah, it sucks.”

Nodding, Isaac crosses over the room to where there’s a pile of DVDs. “What do you want to watch? Most of these are Scott’s but-”

“He won’t mind us watching one,” finishes Stiles. “Half of them are probably actually mine anyway.”

They choose a film and Isaac sticks it on, but it only takes ten minutes for them to be focusing more on their conversation than on the screen.

“You can’t be serious,” Isaac laughs, twisting on his bed so he’s facing Stiles.

“I am! Honestly, he really did wear the purple tie – and man, am I glad he did. It makes for a good story.”

“You seem to have lots of good stories.”

“That’s what happens when you have a knack for getting in trouble, I guess.” Stiles pauses to think about that for a moment, glad he’s always had Scott by his side to make good stories with. “But hey, you’re Scott’s roomie – you’ll probably end up featuring in quite a few of our new good stories.”

Isaac shrugs, lips turning up into a small smile. “I hope so.”

Stiles does too.

 

~~

  
  
“You’re overthinking things,” Isaac points out, leaning across the library table to read Stiles’ notes upside down – Stiles still hasn’t work out how he manages that. 

“What?”

“You’ve worked on this topic all semester which means you already know the basics – so stop stressing over them and focus on the details you’ll need to get the better marks in your test.”

Stiles scowls. “That’s easy for you to say, Mr-somehow- _all_ -my-classes-are-essay-based-this-semester-Lahey.”

Laughing, Isaac kicks Stiles lightly under the table before replying. “Seriously, man, I used to suck at school – I mean suck, really bad grades – and then someone helped me see how to study _well_ and, voila, I’m at college.”

Stiles is ninety per cent sure that when Isaac was getting bad grades it was probably mostly to do with his home life but he refrains from mentioning that and nods his head instead. “You’re right, of course – I do know the basics. It’s just, you know, first test at college.”

“I know. Trust me, I’ll be freaking out next semester when I have to do my first and everyone else is used to them.”

“Yeah, right.” Stiles has known Isaac for a whole semester now and he’s never once seen the guy _freak out_. He’s seen him nervous, quiet, drunk, giddy, without his shirt on (an accident Stiles will be eternally grateful for) but he’s never once seen him lose control. It’s kind of hot.

“Is Isaac distracting you again?” asks Scott, sliding into the seat next to Stiles.

“If by distracting him you mean offering advice on revision techniques?” Isaac shrugs. “Yes.”

“I don’t mind,” offers Stiles. “Isaac was a distraction the first time I met him, remember? Isaac-distractions are nice things.”  
Scott shoots Stiles a look that tells him he’s still not learned to be subtle when he has a crush. Oops.

Isaac clears his throat. “I could, um, distract you again once exams are over. I mean, only if you wanted and-” he trails off, running a hand through his curls.

Stiles doesn’t think he’s seen Isaac looking as awkward in the time they’ve known each other, and he gapes at him because he _thinks_ he knows what Isaac is suggesting but he hasn’t seen it coming and-

“Stiles,” Scott prompts, “you might want to answer him sometime _before_ the end of exams.”

He sticks his tongue out at Scott, then turns and positively beams at Isaac. “I’m going to say this once, just so we’re clear. You, Isaac Lahey, can distract me any time you like, anywhere you like, any way you like.”

And so Isaac does distract him, for the rest of their time at college and after. Stiles never stops enjoying Isaac-distractions.  


 

 


End file.
